Safety Specialist, Santa Barbara CA

Job Description

Job Description

Salary: up to $100,000 BOE

About Santa Barbara Smokehouse (SBS)

Santa Barbara Smokehouse is a leading food manufacturing company known for high-quality, traditional smoked salmon. We are committed to maintaining a safe, compliant, and team-focused work environment where employees can thrive and contribute to operational excellence.

Bilingual English/Spanish preferred

Position Summary

The Safety Specialist is responsible for supporting and maintaining all workplace safety programs within a fast-paced food manufacturing facility. This role plays a hands-on, highly visible part in promoting a culture of safety by working directly with employees and leadership on the production floor.

This is a mid-level role ideal for someone who is experienced in plant safety, enjoys coaching others, and is comfortable balancing compliance, training, and day-to-day safety operations.

Key Responsibilities

• Safety Programs & Compliance
  • Maintain and enforce safety policies, procedures, and programs in alignment with Cal/OSHA regulations
  • Maintain all Reporting & Documentation Cal/OSHA reporting
  • Conduct regular safety audits, inspections, and risk assessments across the facility
  • Ensure vendor/visitor observance to facility safety rules
  • Identify hazards and implement practical corrective actions
  • Act as a key member of the safety committee
• Training & Coaching
  • Lead safety training for employees and supervisors (new hire, ongoing, and refresher training)
  • Coach frontline employees and managers on safe work practices and accountability
  • Reinforce a strong safety culture through daily floor presence and engagement
• Injury Management & Workers Compensation
  • Respond to and investigate workplace injuries and incidents
  • Manage workers compensation cases, including reporting, documentation, and follow-up
  • Partner with HR and management on return-to-work programs and modified duty
• Floor Presence & Engagement
  • Walk the production floor daily to monitor conditions, behaviors, and compliance
  • Build relationships with employees to proactively address safety concerns
  • Serve as a visible and approachable safety resource
• Continuous Improvement
  • Track and analyze safety metrics including incidents & near-misses trends, )
  • Recommend and implement improvements to reduce risk and enhance safety performance
  • Identify and Implement continuous improvement initiatives

Qualifications

• 36 years of safety experience in a manufacturing environment (food manufacturing strongly preferred)
• Working knowledge of Cal/OSHA regulations and compliance requirements
• Hands-on experience managing workplace injuries and workers compensation claims
• Strong understanding of common manufacturing safety risks and controls
• Proven ability to train, coach, and influence employees at all levels
• Comfortable working on the production floor daily in an active, hands-on role
• Bilingual Spanish/English strongly preferred
• Strong organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills

Why Join SBS?

• Be a key driver of safety culture in a growing food manufacturing business
• Highly visible role with direct impact on employees and operations
• Collaborative environment where your voice and ideas matter
• Competitive compensation and opportunity to grow